Yours Eternally
by GinnyK
Summary: "Can love be eternal? Can love surpass even death? I do not know... I can only wait." A H/G story... **Complete**.


Author: Aimen

Title: Yours Eternally 

Rating: PG

Disclaimer: Everything belongs to J.K.Rowling!

Summary: Could love override the barrier of death? Could love ever be eternal?

~*~

The rusty, battered gate creaked miserably as it was pushed open. She stood there, as if deciding one last time whether she wanted to go in or not. There was a slight chill in the air and it added to the melancholy of the place. Everything seemed weather beaten – the gate, the fences, the posts, the tombstones…

The wind suddenly blew fiercely, almost whipping away her shawl and she wrapped it around herself tightly, suddenly deriving confidence as though from the wind itself. She had come from far and she couldn't turn back now.

Holding her shawl securely, she entered the yard, stepping onto the ground covered with crisp scarlet and yellowish autumn leaves. They crunched beneath her feet, cutting through the silence abruptly. Carefully, with her hands in the warm pockets of her cloak, she stepped forward, careful not to ruin the peace and serenity. 

She didn't know her way about but she scanned the yard as if searching for a place she had come to before and it had only slightly changed. 

'Do you need any help, Miss?'

She turned around to find the caretaker, a kindly man, gazing at her through warm blue eyes. She blinked and looked away.

'It's okay, I'll find my way…' 

She forced the words out of her throat.

He walked way and she walked down the path slowly, raising her gaze only slightly. All around her, the wind blew, carrying with it wilted, crisp leaves. Thin beams of golden, late afternoon sunlight fell upon tombstones with unfamiliar names inscribed on them, as many as a hundred years old. She knew what she was searching for…it wasn't a hundred years old…

She had reached the newer part of the yard, an extension of the original one. She knew she was heading in the right direction. She knew she wouldn't need any help from anyone, from her brothers or the caretaker. A large Banyan tree grew at the end of the yard, with it's dangling vines creating a canopy over three graves, close together. She paused abruptly, her eyes pinned to the spot. She tried to remove the lump in her throat but all her efforts were worthless. She stood there, watching the shade beneath the Banyan tree for what seemed like eternity. A gust of wind threatened to blow away her shawl again and holding it firmly, she stepped off the path onto the soft earth. 

She found herself standing underneath the Banyan tree but not looking at the graves. The wind rustled the vines of the tree and sunlight filtered through onto the graves, illuminating the tombstones. She closed her eyes and then opened them again, her gaze fixed at the graves.

She knew which one it was. It wasn't one of two which had weather beaten tombstones, a vine winding around one, familiar names inscribed, slightly covered with dust. 

She forced herself to look at the one she had come searching for in the first place. Her gaze fixed at the tombstone. 

Harry James Potter 

**_31st July 1980 – 14th August 1998_******

Forever in debt shall we be To this great person who lies here Who sacrificed his life and braved the sword The hero who conquered the Dark Lord 

The inscription blurred and she dropped to her knees at the foot of the grave, burying her face in her hands. It was true, she couldn't deny it, it was right there before her…

_A strange silence filled the candle-lit room even though it was full of people. Even Fred and George were silent. Her mother sat on a sofa with her father – she seemed to be on the verge of tears. Her father looked tired, dark circles underneath his eyes. Bill was home too – he sat in a tall chair, his face sober, no hint of any amusement in his eyes. Percy sat beside his father, looking very much uncomfortable, as if he wanted to be of some use but didn't know what to do, where to start. Charlie stood behind the sofa on which his mother and father sat, looking silently around the room. _

_Hermione was sitting on the edge of a large sofa, looking quite pale but calm. Ron sat right next to her with his arm around her. His face was almost expressionless and it was the only time she remembered seeing it that way._

_Suddenly, the flames in the fireplace turned green and a figure – Sirius Black stepped out, brushing his robes. Another person – Remus Lupin quickly followed and her father stood up to meet them._

_'He's coming?' he asked quietly. Sirius nodded silently. His face seemed pale too and his eyes had the haunted look of years ago. Remus turned to the fireplace just as the flames turned green again and this time, a tall person with jet-black hair and round glasses, very different from the eleven year old starting at Hogwarts eight years ago, stepped out. Harry Potter._

_She watched him closely. Nobody had imagined the eleven-year-old Harry Potter with knobbly knees and wild, jet-black hair would grow up to be a tall, handsome young man with a confident yet humble air about him._

_'Did you get it?' her father asked, keeping his voice steady. Harry nodded and opened his palm to reveal a small, circular, silver pendant with a large mauve gem in the centre. _

_'It'll work at midnight,' said Harry, his voice so different, deeper and more confident than before. She felt so strange, as if her stomach was suddenly very hollow. The pendant gave her a bad feeling. The pendant that was a Portkey. The pendant that would take Harry – alone – to the last battle between truth and evil.  _

_There was silence for a moment before Ron got up and hugged Harry tightly. The two stood still in a silent embrace for what seemed like eternity in that room and finally Ron stepped back, wiping his eyes hastily. Harry was looking at the floor, his eyes not visible. Hermione stood up and hugged Harry, just as warmly as Ron had. _

_She couldn't watch the scene before her for long…everything was so painful. Hermione had stepped back and now everyone was hugging Harry silently, one after the other. It seemed everyone had forgotten how to speak. Her mother had burst into silent tears and had pressed her handkerchief to her eyes. Ron stood by the wall, looking into the fireplace. _

_She couldn't take all of it any longer. Everything was blurring before her and a large lump was forming in her throat. She gripped the edges of the chair tightly, trying desperately to fight her tears. When they fell, she stood up and ran out of the room, letting her emotions flow out of her through her tears. _

_A pair of emerald green eyes watched her until she was gone from sight, out of the room.  _

_Harry put the silver pendant into his pocket, knowing where she had gone._

_'Ginny?'_

_She didn't turn around but more tears were now coursing down the side of her face. He walked up to her, his footsteps padding on the grass, cutting through the silence of the moonlit night. There was silence but she knew he was there, right behind her. Why did it have to be so difficult?    _

_She felt him place a hand on her shoulder gently. She turned to him and looked up. His eyes were bright, gazing down upon her. What did she see in them? Pain? Fright? _

_He placed a hand on her cheek and she could hold back no longer. She flung her arms around him, holding onto him, her tears flowing as a dam burst inside her. He wrapped his arms around her and she finally, after years and years of waiting, realized what it felt like to be held in his arms._

_'Ginny…I don't want to go leaving things incomplete…if I don't come back –' _

_'No,' she gasped through her tears. He grasped her hands firmly._

_'I have to tell you this…if I don't come back…I want to leave you with something to remember me by,' he said, his voice slightly thick. She looked up as his hands held her face lightly and he bent down to kiss her._

_Time was lost but when he pulled away, she knew it hadn't been enough. She had been waiting for this moment for so long and when it had come, it was over too soon. She looked up into his eyes, an infinite number of things she'd want to say coursing through her mind but her voice was long gone. He grasped her hand tightly._

_'You'll be back,' she managed. It was more of a question than a statement. He pulled her to himself and wrapped his arms around her. _

_'I love you,' she thought she heard him whisper and in whatever way she could manage, she repeated it.     _

_The next moment, he had pulled away and with a kiss that still tingled her lips when she thought of him, he had let go of her, never to touch her again._

It was then, kneeling on the soft earth in the graveyard did she realize he had never answered her question. He had never said he'd come back.

Tears seemed meaningless now but still they flowed freely. It had been only a month after all. Only a month.

She longed for one look at him now, wherever he was. Helpless, she placed a hand on the dark earth of the grave, weaving her finders through its coolness. She felt something against her finger in the earth and lifted her hand. Particles of the earth blew away in the wind, leaving one single green leaf. 

There was no sign of the on coming winter on it. It was completely flawless and fresh and the exact green of his eyes – the eyes she had admired so much, the eyes that had hidden behind them so much. 

She closed her fingers around the leaf that now meant to her so much.  __

The wind was no blowing more fiercely. She realized it was getting late and she got up. Maybe this was where he had always wanted to be. With his parents. She thought of him more and sobs escaped her throat, cutting through the eerie silence. 

It wasn't fair and she knew it. It wasn't fair with him… with anyone… she gritted her teeth to hold back her tears and sobs but his name was on her trembling lips.

'Harry… why…' She wondered vaguely if she had voiced her thoughts and sobbed, letting tears run down her face. She covered her face with her hands, her shoulders shaking, as she stood before the three tombs. 

Her hands suddenly felt warm… a strange, comfortable and familiar warmth. Curious, she moved them away from her face, her eyes going wide. It couldn't be and yet it was… it was… it couldn't be true and yet it was. 

He came closer, slowly, his opaque figure standing tall before her, his hands resting on top of hers… 

She found a pair of warm, airy arms envelope her and even though it was doubtful she could lean into the embrace without falling right through his smoky body, she closed her eyes, trembling from head to toe. 

She cried harder now, harder than she had ever before as she realized what they had missed… what she still missed and what she'd miss for as long as she lived. She could feel him, though only slightly… it wasn't cold like it was supposed to be and if she closed her eyes, she could forget he wasn't in her world anymore… she could forget she was standing at the foot of his grave.

'I'd been waiting for you…' She looked up into his ethereal face when she heard those echoing words. If she imagined, she could just see his eyes emerald again, not the smoky color they were now.

'Sorry…' she whispered but she brought his finger up to silence her. Pearly tears were visible in his eyes too.

'I miss you…' he whispered. She tightly shut her eyes as more tears came to them.

'I…want t-to stay with you…' she whispered, wishing she could.

'No, Gin,' he said quickly, his voice tight, 'you have to stay… where you are… I'll wait…'

'I c-can't leave you…'

'I can be wherever you are…'

'Not… fair…' she gasped, against the outline of his shoulder. He tightened his hold on her and she could feel it. 

'I'm sorry… but I… had to…'

She knew it was no longer a question of _why_. He gently turned her head towards him, in whichever way he could manage it and kissed her. It was a faint but an exact replica of the kiss her had given her before leaving for the final battle. 

'I'll wait… I love you…' 

'I love you too,' she whispered, brushing her tears away. The wind blew again, causing Ginny to shiver.

'Go… your family will be worried…'

'I –'

'I _will_ be with you, wherever you are…'

She reached up and kissed him softly, aching to feel him properly and pouring all her love into the kiss, hoping, wishing he could feel her. He released her, slowly and giving him a shaky smile, she thrust her hands into her pockets, turned around and walked back towards the gate of the yard. She smiled serenely, knowing she didn't have to say 'goodbye'. He was still with her. 

At the gate, she turned around once. He was there… sitting on the bench under the tree, hiding his loneliness behind that smile…

But he was with her too. Smiling, she stepped out of the gate and returned to her own world again. At least for the time being.

Can love be eternal?

Can love surpass even death?

I do not know… I can only wait… 

The earth is lovelier than the air I breathe

For you no longer breathe in the same air

I'd rather lie down in that earth than stay here

Don't hold me back

I wont… I cant

Not for long

I will only be truly alive when I am laid to rest

And find a new home in that soft earth

You wont have to wait for long after that

A pearly figure…I'll rise as you did

And you'll be standing there, your arms open

And held in them, I shall finally be alive 

Can love be eternal?

Can love surpass even death?

Wait… _we_ can answer that…

- Composed by me, myself. 

**Author's Note: **It's up to you to decide whether the ending was happy or sad. I haven't written any such stories yet and this one was nagging at me since I read Donna's (Nell de Montfort) story – "A Little Fall of Rain." I was inspired by her story to write this one. 

I wrote the little songfic at the end, related to the fic… I hope you like it. Please tell me what you thought of this story. :)

Lots of love,

Ameera a.k.a. Aimen (Aimen at gryffindortwer.net and fanfiction.net)


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